The extreme variations in size and weight between yen coins of different values, plus the fact that the five-yen and 50-yen pieces have holes in their centers, give @thumb_tani plenty of options to work with when balancing and positioning the components of his creations.

@thumb_tani doesn’t strictly confine himself to the media of legal tender, though. When he’s looking to mix things up, he’ll also employ non-coinage elements in his work, including spoons, pens, and marbles.

Being a Japanese balancing enthusiast, obviously the yen is the form of currency @thumb_tani has the easiest access to. A few of his projects also incorporate the peso, though, giving them an international flavor.

If calling someone a “balancing enthusiast” seems a little odd, be aware that if he doesn’t have any coins handy, @thumb_tani is also perfectly happy to amuse himself by using umbrellas or eggs to thumb his nose at gravity.

And while these stacks of coins look like they could topple over at the slightest shift in balance, at least one of them was stable enough to continue standing as a bug crawled its way to the top of the structure.

There’s no question that @thumb_tani is extremely talented at what he does. However, while you obviously need money to artistically stack up coins, you really can’t make much money doing that, so @thumb_tani needs a day job. We’re not sure if he’s already secured employment, but if not, he might want to see if any of his local bookstores are hiring.